EDIT

[MilkyWay]

Bought a Phanteks PH-TC14PE from a user here on TPU. Great performing CPU cooler but the fans are a problem. The fan model is PH-F140TS. As you can see a blade has snapped off the fans. One is an original included fan and the other is a replacement which was sent to me kindly for free.

I was just checking to see if the fan was touching the ram or not and blam! the replacement had the exact same problem. Literally if you even tap the fans they break, so brittle and thin. Dont get me wrong amazing noise to airflow performance but in my experience a little too easy to break.

I didn't even feel myself touching the fan

Ive got Lian Li fans and a Noiseblocker as an exhaust, the Noiseblocker is amazing.

 

[qubit]

They sound like poor quality fans, or a manufacturing defect. Phanteks is a new brand in the high end market and they need to prove themselves. If this happens a lot, then they won't be around for long.

The Noctuia NH-D14 is superb and I bought myself one the other day. Expensive, but worth it.

 

[MilkyWay]

They sound like poor quality fans, or a manufacturing defect. Phanteks is a new brand in the high end market and they need to prove themselves. If this happens a lot, then they won't be around for long.

The Noctuia NH-D14 is superb and I bought myself one the other day. Expensive, but worth it.

Phanteks PH-TC14PE is currently the best performing cooler on the market, beats the Thermalright Silver Arrow and the D14 on performance if only ever so slightly. The only problem are the fans build quality and thats a shame as it spoils a rather amazing cooler. Either this is a one off and im a dumbass or the fans are not well made. Shame really as the fans push a great amount of air at really hardly any noise at all. The cooler itself is a beast and built very well but the fans on the other hand in my experience are not well built.

Cooler cost me £45 shipped but as i understand retails for around £60 odds in the UK.

The fan in the middle of the cooler is still working fine and is surprisingly doing a great job on its own.

 

[LAN_deRf_HA]

This isn't really uncommon if you touch a fan blade. Had this happen with a sunon and yate loon before. Mind you I wasn't the one that did it. This is one of those things I don't understand. If you can see what you're doing you shouldn't hit anything unless you're having a sugar crash. If you can't see what you're doing get a flashlight. Never done this and I pop my side panel off a lot. Even when I'm checking to isolate a noise I know you stop a fan from friction on the hub, not the blades.

Just be more careful and problem solved.

 

[MilkyWay]

Thing is i didn't feel anything AT ALL, you would think if i touched it i would feel it. Literally zero force was used and i wasn't being ham fisted. I certainly didn't touch anything when the first fan broke.
I know what your thinking, users fault. Still i dont understand why only one fan blade broke off? I find it a bit coincidental that both fans have each one blade broken off with a clean cut.

 

[Athlon2K15]

this happened to me as well with a Noctua D14,snapped two blades off of a P14 fan.I wouldnt put the blame on phanteks at all.you should never have your hands in your case when its on anyways

 

[MilkyWay]

Foolish of me to have my hand in there when the replacement fan was spinning but you will have to take my word on not being ham fisted. I had checked the space between ram and fan, my hand wasn't even inside the case anymore then i saw that the fan was fucked so i took out the 3 pin to stop it running. Only 2 mins after attaching it to the cooler exact same damage as the last one. I didn't feel myself touching the fan so i know didn't use any force on it but at the same time its obvious i touched it somewhere. Even if you just feel the fan blades when its not installed they feel weak and brittle, the Noiseblocker clearly is made of a stronger material and sounds quieter at the same RPM. In the past ive stopped my lian li fans from running to isolate a noise problem and they didn't snap, NOW that was a stupid idea.

2 fans, the exact same clean cut, both 1 blade missing, coincidence or not they still broke. I am at fault that much is obvious but it was an accident. So guess ill just buy another brand of fan, id probably break another Phanteks fan at this rate. Their fans retail for £16 which is a lot, had i stuck my finger in there or totally palmed the fan i would not be really bothered.


EDIT: lets put it this way i was not expecting it to be so delicate. Its like porcelain China it looks nice but you have to handle it carefully, i understand that now.